Black residents of Shreveport, Caddo Parish, Louisiana first learn of their freedom this day when Federal soldiers march into town with good news. The soldiers, tasked with helping with Reconstruction in the state through the Freedmen’s Bureau, remain in Shreveport for ten years.The Bureau assists former slaves in securing jobs with fair pay and obtaining…
Louisiana is in the news this day. The Union ship Kentucky leaves Shreveport late in the day with some 800 passengers aboard, many paroled Confederate soldiers, some with their families. Plying the Red River, the overloaded ship strikes a snag that rips a gash in the vessel. Two hours pass before the leak is noticed.…
Minor skirmishes continue to mark the month of April, such as today’s Battle of Salyersville. The Kentucky town, like many in that state and in Magoffin County in particular, is by now used to the tug-of-war between Union and Confederate forces. The town’s citizenry is comprised, to a significant degree, of former Virginians. Not particularly…